Garment construction for flaring skirts



Feb. 5, 1963 E. G. LONG GARMENT CONSTRUCTION FOR FLARING SKIRTS Filed Aug. 31, 1955' INVENTOR: BY E/Sle 6. Long United States Patent 3,076,200 GARMENT CONSTRUCTION FOR FLARING SKIRTS Elsie G. Long, 232 Harding Place, Nashville 5, Tenn. Filed Aug. 31, 1955, Ser. No. 531,691 3 Claims. (Cl. 2-215) This invention relates to garment construction and shaping apparatus for flaring skirts.

More particularly the invention relates (A) to the construction of the skirt and/or petticoat of a ladies garment, characterized by the marginal joining of hollow or tubular fabric-formed elements of upwardly diminishing crosssection to define a widely flaring conical skirt or petticoat, such element having a relatively flat inner or control panel overlain by an arched outer panel, which in the petticoat may have a cross sectional circumference of the order of two to five times the corresponding width of the control panel (and optionally additionally stiffened by stays), while in the outer skirt the circumference may approach or even exceed ten times the corresponding control-panel width.

It is accordingly a principal object of the invention to provide a shape-maintaining flared skirt or underskirt formed of hollow tapered fabric cells, whereby a large number of conventional petticoats (four or five) can be replaced by a single cell-type petticoat.

It is another object to provide such a skirt in which the cells have relatively flat inner panels bridged by archshaped outer panels, either or both panels being optionally provided with one or more transversely extending stiffening stays.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the following detailed description thereof proceeds.

In the drawing-storming a part of this specification and in which like reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the several views:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a petticoat embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view, partly broken away, showing the details of construction of the petticoat of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary schematic plan view from below of the petticoat of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary schematic plan view from below of the skirt of an evening gown embodying the invention.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of a drying, shaping and pressing form for a garment constructed according to the disclosed invention.

With reference now to FIGS. 1 through 3 of the drawings, the numeral 11 generally design-ates a petticoat, pettislip or underskirt made as herein disclosed. FIGS. 1 and 3 illustrate the petticoat 11 as being formed of twelve hollow tapered elements, sewed or otherwise joined to form a roughly conical inner skirt-like portion generally designated 13 and an outer scalloped or undulated skirt portion generally designated 15. The skirt portions 13 and 15 are sewed or otherwise firmly fixed to the yoke or waist band 17 (of any desired construction). The yoke 17 and at least the upper portion of the petticoat 11 are circumferentially divided and provided with conventional fastening means (not shown) so that V the same may be easily put on or taken off.

As best seen in FIG. 2 each element of the petticoat 11 consists of an arch-shaped or troughed-shaped panel 21, the upper ends of which are desirably gathered as at 22. Each of the arch-shaped or trough-shaped panels 21 is bridged across its inner edges by a control panel 23. The panels 21 and 23 are formed of any suitable material, such as pellon, domestic, nylon, buftont, etc. The mat- 3,076,200 Patented Feb. 5., 1963 schematically represented stitching 25 (FIG. 2), to the similarly inwardly extending edges of adjacent petticoat elements.

It is desirable but not necessary that the petticoat 1-1 be provided with stiffening stays 27 attached to the archshaped panels 21 in a conventional manner, as by the sewed-on straps 29, since the cellular construction of the petticoat 11 provides very satisfactory shape-retention without the use of stiifening elements, such as stays 27. The relatively straight control panels 23 and the stay-like efiect of the four layers of fabric at the junction between adjacent tapered skirt elements usually provides sufficient inherent rigidity without the stays 27.

FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of a modified form of skirt. In this species of the invention, the much fuller outer skirt panels 31 are formed of tulle, lace or other evening-dress material, and constitute the outer portion of the evening garment. The control panels 33 are similarly attached to the inner edges of the outer panels 31 and form an outwardly extending foundation for the panels 31, which sway or flow back and forth in a known manner. In this outer-garment construction, a petticoat constructed according to FIGS. 1-3 may be employed as an undergarment, or if desired stays similar to stays 27 may be added to the control panels 33, in a known manner.

FIG. 5 discloses a drying, shaping and/or pressing form primarily intended for use with the underskirt of FIG. 1, but obviously adaptable to the skirt of FIG. 4 by a mere change in size and shape. The shaping apparatus comprises a pedestal base 41, a standard 43, and a mounting and distribution box 45 attached to the upper end of the standard 43. Box 45 has extending radially therefrom the support arms 47, of a number corresponding to the number of tapered elements in the petticoat or skirt to be shaped on the apparatus. Each arm 47 mounts a ball-and-socket connector 49 for universally swivally mounting a shaping or pressing element 51 thereon. Each element 51 is of a size and shape corresponding to the tapered hollow space encompassed by the joined panels 21 and 23.

When the elements 51 are swung into their vertical position illustrated by the broken-line showing of FIG. 5, the petticoat 11, which has been washed or dry-cleaned, can be lowered downwardly over the vertically extending shaping elements 51, which are gradually swung inwardly to their full-line positions of FIG. 5 as the petticoat 11 slides downwardly into element-enveloping position on the apparatus. While not necessary, it is desirable that the elements 51 of the shaping apparatus should be provided with means for heating themselves to improve and accelerate the drying and setting of the petticoat. Any suitable heating devices obviously may be used, the herein schematically disclosed electric heaters 53, supplied with power through the conductors 55, being shown merely as representative.

While I have shown certain preferred embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that many changes can be made in the size, shape, composition and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A skirt structure comprising:

(a) an inner skirt portion having a truncated conical configuration,

(b) a circumferentially continuous outer undulated skirt portion,

(0) means for joining said outer skirt portion to said inner skirt portion along circumferentially spaced lines on the surface of said inner skirt portion to form a plurality of adjacent hollow tapered elements,

(d) the inner skirt portion of each tapered element comprising a relatively flat tapered panel, and the outer skirt portion of each tapered element comprising an arch-shaped panel having a circumference substantially greater than the Width of the corresponding flat panel.

2. The invention according to claim 1 in which the circumference of said arch-shaped panel is 2-6 times the width of said corresponding fiat panel.

3. A skirt structure comprising:

(a) an inner skirt portion having a truncated conical configuration,

(b) an outer skirt portion having a substantially greater circumference than and completely covering said inner skirt portion,

(0) said inner skirt portion comprising a plurality of relatively fiat tapered fabric panels having mating marginal edges,

(d) said outer skirt portion comprising arch-shaped fabric panels having mating inner edges,

(e) means for joining the mating edges of said flat panels and said arch-shaped panels together along cireumferentially spaced lines to form a series of laterally adjacent hollow tapered elements,

(f) each arch-shaped panel having a circumference greater than the Width of each flat panel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Hooper Nov. 5, Colver May 5, Bury Dec. 29, Schreier Dec. 31, Polakott July 15, Friedland Nov. 1, Terry July "28, Weiser Oct. 6,

FOREIGN PATENTS France Nov. 29, 

1. A SKIRT STRUCTURE COMPRISING: (A) AN INNER SKIRT PORTION HAVING A TRUNCATED CONICAL CONFIGURATION, (B) A CIRCUMFERENTIALLY CONTINUOUS OUTER UNDULATED SKIRT PORTION, (C) MEANS FOR JOINING SAID OUTER SKIRT PORTION TO SAID INNER SKIRT PORTION ALONG CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED LINES ON THE SURFACE OF SAID INNER SKIRT PORTION TO FORM A PLURALITY OF ADJACENT HOLLOW TAPERED ELEMENTS, (D) THE INNER SKIRT PORTION OF EACH TAPERED ELEMENT COMPRISING A RELATIVELY FLAT TAPERED PANEL, AND THE OUTER SKIRT PORTION OF EACH TAPERED ELEMENT COMPRISING AN ARCH-SHAPED PANEL HAVING A CIRCUMFERENCE SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER THAN THE WIDTH OF THE CORRESPONDING FLAT PANEL. 